Chapter 27

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Chapter 027: The Young Assistant’s Understanding of Orcs

Since coming to Stormwind, Jesse had no intention of going to Redridge or Lake Everstill for anything.

Three or four Gnoll Tribes, countless Nagas lurking in the lakes, the Army of the Black Dragon that could arrive at any moment, giant poisonous spiders bigger than cows, and a few Orc Legions occupying the wild hills and mountains could all lead to sudden death if one missteps.

However, it should be many years later for Redridge to become like this. At this point in time, the Orc tribe has just been defeated and retreated to Blackrock Mountain, taking control of a part of the Dark Iron Dwarves’ surface city – Blackrock Spire. They are currently at war with the Dark Iron Dwarves, fighting for control of Blackrock Mountain.

Soon the Blackrock Orcs will gain the upper hand. Not because they have more people or are stronger, but because the Dark Iron Dwarves, relying on their underground city Shadowforge City, continue to fiercely attack the invaders on the surface. In just a few years, they have pushed the Orc tribe to the brink and will soon achieve complete victory.

However, at this critical moment, a group of unexpected guests arrived. Led by Nefarian, the eldest son of the black dragon Deathwing, the Army of the Black Dragon descended upon Blackrock Mountain, formed an alliance with the Orcs, and quickly drove the dwarves back underground, seizing control of the surface of Blackrock Mountain, turning it into the Orcs’ base.

Nefarian’s goal is to find a new dragon lair to strengthen the Army of the Black Dragon. Through this alliance, he fully enslaved the Orcs, turning the tribes of Blackrock Spire into his dragon’s lair defenders.

With the arrival of the black dragons, the dwarves in the Burning Steppes lost their reinforcements from underground and were gradually pushed back by the Orcs. The coming of the black dragons meant that under Nefarian’s rule, the Blackrock tribe quickly took control of a large area of the northern Redridge, turning it into a battleground against the Kingdom of Stormwind.

When did the black dragons arrive, is it now? Or maybe a few years later, or has it already happened?

In the seventh year of the Dark Portal, the current Great Chief Orgrim Doomhammer of the Orcs was captured under Blackrock Spire for just a year. The conflict between Orcs and dwarves on Blackrock Spire should not have escalated to its most intense point yet, so the arrival of the black dragons has not occurred.

Jesse cautiously replied, "The Blackrock Orcs should be gathering their forces, especially since they have suffered heavy losses from the Alliance armies in the Burning Steppes. It may take some time for them to recover."

"Ha, they’re much more radical than you imagine," Malin took a sip of tea and said, "The guards in Redridge have already spotted them appearing south of Redridge, scouts from the Blackrock clan… have reached our area. According to our spies, Blackrock Orcs are fighting dwarves all over Burning Steppes, fighting for control. Should we let the Blackrock Orcs enter Redridge and fight the Gnolls, so the kingdom can benefit?"

"Blackrock Orcs are more likely to cooperate with Gnolls," Jesse said, "These races who like Black Magic might have a common language. And they wouldn’t be foolish enough to kill each other while still having a common, powerful enemy in us."

Malin nodded and said, "That’s possible indeed."

After speaking, he twitched his nose and asked, "Why do I smell a strange decaying odor in the room, did you bring it in?"

"What…" Jesse sniffed himself and said, "I don’t smell anything."

Malin walked around the table, leaned in to smell, and asked, "Did you go near a graveyard or something?"

Since Malin had noticed, Jesse couldn’t deny it anymore and said, "Yes…"

"What were you doing at the graveyard, do you have loved ones buried in Stormwind?" Malin asked suspiciously, "But if they were loved ones, you wouldn’t have to open all the coffins to pay your respects, right?"

"No," Jesse said, "I was looking for Grave Moss."

"Oh, so that’s how it is." Malin looked much more relaxed, took another sip of tea, and asked, "Want to earn some extra money? Can Grave Moss be found nearby for picking? I thought we had to go to South Elwynn to find it. Have you been busy with this the past few days?"

"Nothing special to gain," Jesse said.

"Grave Moss doesn’t grow in ordinary graves," Malin said. "A skilled herbalist wouldn’t just dive into any cemetery; it must be a grave deeply influenced by necrotic energy… So, I speculate that the Great Mausoleum to the south, affected by a blast of dark forces, might have some. But never try to go there; getting infected with corpse poison is a big hassle."

"Got it, thanks for the reminder," Jesse nodded and started cleaning the dirtier spot beneath the bookshelf.

"You work swiftly, Mr. Seso," Malin took out his pocket watch, put on his glasses, and said, "I hope you can finish your cleaning duties before 8 o’clock every day from now on. I’ll be here around 8:30. Don’t leave in the morning; be available at a moment’s notice. You can freely read my books during this time, and there are some in the adjacent room. If you get bored, I can bring you some of Amy’s novels to read."

"No problem, Master." Jesse looked up at the bookshelves, mostly filled with books on history and natural sciences. Taking this opportunity to learn more about the world of Azeroth in detail wasn’t a bad idea.

"I usually have classes in the afternoons. If you need to find me at other times, you can go to the Verdant Crystal Tower in the south of the Mage Quarter. I live on the second floor, and my name is on the door."

Jesse had seen the place known as the Verdant Crystal Tower—a small building with walls covered in colorful flowers attracted by arcane magic, violet roof tiles, resembling a villa. Downstairs was a pretty little square with even a stone fountain in the middle.

Those living there must be the highest-ranking professors and scholars in the Mage Quarter.

If one day you could live in such a tall building, you must have a high status in Stormwind, right?

"Do you have any other questions?" Malin asked.

"I want to learn a language in my spare time," Jesse said. "Like Elvish, Dwarven Language, or Orcish Language."

Upon hearing Orcish Language, Malin curiously asked, "I can understand Elvish and Dwarven Language, why would you want to learn Orcish Language?"

Jesse looked at the old mage, his brain spinning rapidly, determined to come up with a reasonable explanation in a few seconds. He didn’t have the energy to condemn himself for not having a good reason before coming.

"I think… in the future, we might have to accept the fact that we will have to coexist with Orcs in the same world. I want to learn the language of this race in advance, maybe there will be more opportunities by then. Overall, I want to be more useful."

"Ah…" Malin raised his eyebrows, nodding continuously, "You are thinking far ahead. Have you heard about the contents of the letters King Terenas II wrote to other kings? Lordaeron seems to have softened its attitude towards Orcs. They have set up Orc shelters, providing some work for those Orcs in the shelters… I think King Terenas II might have the same view of the future as you, maybe you and them both have some connection as Lordaeron people."

He flipped through a stack of papers next to him, pulled out a sheet of paper filled with names, pointed to an item on the paper with his finger, and said, "If I remember correctly, the Wizard’s Sanctum did start preparing Orcish Language courses a few years ago, and now this course has been running for half a year. There are not many students, are you interested in going to check it out?"

Jesse asked, "It has been running for half a year, will I be able to keep up with the progress?"

"You don’t need to worry about that," Malin said, pointing to the words on the page. "The current Language Orcish course is very different from other language courses. In fact, the teachers aren’t much stronger than the students. They gather Language Orcish words from captured Orcs, enslaved slaves, and survivors from the tribe, learning the correct pronunciation of characters, the meanings of words… and making some guesses. It’s more of an exploration process for both students and teachers in the Language Orcish class."

Jesse asked, "I see, what about the Elvish language class?"

"As for the Elvish language, I don’t recommend studying it at the Wizard’s Sanctum. We don’t have Elvish teachers here, and the human teachers aren’t very skilled. The courses here are mainly for training diplomats to serve the royal family, focusing on communication and mutual understanding. However, most diplomatic occasions now use Common language. The so-called Elvish language for diplomacy is mostly to leave a good impression on the Elves, like saying hello, complimenting their clothes, or praising the weather. If you truly want to learn Elvish, you should go to Dalaran. Of course, the best place is undoubtedly Quel’Thalas. By studying there, you could also become the first human settler in Silvermoon City."

After speaking, Malin smiled and said, "By the way, would you like me to contact the Language Orcish teacher, Mr. Caro Duchamp, for you?"

Jesse quickly replied, "Thank you very much if you could."

"Don’t expect results too soon," Malin warned. "I rarely see him, and I won’t write to him, or it might seem like I’m begging him to let you into his class."

Jesse nodded, surprised at how easy it was to find an opportunity to learn Language Orcish, and grateful for Malin’s willingness to help. If he could learn quickly, he could progress faster in studying warlock magic, making it easier for him to defeat the troublemakers in The Slaughtered Lamb basement.

For now, all he could do was hope that the book containing both languages was indeed a genuine Language Orcish version of a Demonic textbook. In that case, it would almost be like finding a shortcut, as long as he wasn’t discovered by the Wizard’s Sanctum.